(Unknown POV)
The Council did not send a warning.
They sent an execution squad.
Before dawn, flames lit the edge of the forest surrounding the Shadowfang territory. Smoke curled through the trees, thick with the scent of burning herbs, silver, and fur. Maria stood barefoot in the soft loam, her new Luna mark glowing faintly beneath her skin, a spectral thread tying her to the very ground she vowed to protect.
She had expected politics.
But this? This was war.
Joseph stood at her right, blood smudged across his cheek. “They sent three squads. We lost two scouts before we even smelled the ash.”
Joseph strode up from the ridge, his eyes a haunting, molten gold. “They’re not just Council soldiers. They’ve bound them to Blood Oaths. Half of them aren’t even in control anymore.”
“Bound b
